Lyrl's recent activity
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Comment on Three children and a teacher were killed in Bend, Oregon, elementary school shooting, police say in ~news
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Comment on Sweden's national broadcaster SVT suspects some of the 4,077 songs submitted for Melodifestivalen 2027 were generated using artificial intelligence in ~music
Lyrl LinkIt sounds like they can't tell from the song itself, only from behavior or statements of the submitters. Potentially a big drag on the reviewers evaluating the submissions if the volume goes way up.the broadcaster became suspicious unknown applicants submitted large numbers of songs across different genres... some applicants openly acknowledged using AI to create their songs.
It sounds like they can't tell from the song itself, only from behavior or statements of the submitters. Potentially a big drag on the reviewers evaluating the submissions if the volume goes way up.
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Comment on Ukraine struck Yandex data centers, Russian bots went silent—now questions are mounting in ~society
Lyrl LinkWhat a misleading title. The article text itself explains that automated traffic is what has confirmed declines, most automated traffic is not directly related to social media bots, and the author...What a misleading title. The article text itself explains that automated traffic is what has confirmed declines, most automated traffic is not directly related to social media bots, and the author appears to have not found any analysis of actual social media bot activity.
The suggested phenomenon of reduction in social media bot activity, while plausible as an indirect relationship to the decline in automated traffic, remains speculative and unconfirmed.
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Comment on What it means when the US right refers to the ‘Indian question’ in ~society
Lyrl LinkI had skimmed some things on the Bo French controversy, but hadn't realized the group he was being racist against in his comment on the UT football picture was people from India. Interesting and...I had skimmed some things on the Bo French controversy, but hadn't realized the group he was being racist against in his comment on the UT football picture was people from India. Interesting and sad that the focus on African-Americans and Hispanic immigrants (especially Hispanics in occupations that don't require a college degree) has broadened to include Indians, especially those with darker skin.
To [French's] dismay, many of the exultant people in cowboy hats, burnt orange T-shirts and other spirit gear appeared to be of South Asian heritage...
Keeperman argued that the very fact that people like French objected to the picture of the football crowd showed that Indian Americans were not part of the American mainstream.
“Successful assimilation is precisely that you wouldn’t notice it,” Keeperman told Rufo. “The mere fact of us being able to notice — that no, this is not an assimilated group, this is just a bunch of Indians at the game — is itself sort of definitionally the case that they’re not yet assimilated.”
At another point, he called Indians “visibly conspicuous, in the way that darker-skinned people are.”Yikes.
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Comment on Why is there no word for please in the Nordic languages – are their speakers simply more direct, or is politeness expressed in ways outsiders may not immediately recognise in ~humanities.languages
Lyrl Link ParentI was taught "por favor" in Spanish class, and it worked exactly how I would expect the English "please" to work during the college semester I spent in Spain.I was taught "por favor" in Spanish class, and it worked exactly how I would expect the English "please" to work during the college semester I spent in Spain.
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Comment on Someone ‘torturing’ LLMs in a robot prison has triggered the dumbest debate in AI yet in ~tech
Lyrl Link ParentIt seems like good corporate liability protection to try to prevent association with people who both enjoy AI "torture" and also torture of biological beings. I came across this awful news article...It seems like good corporate liability protection to try to prevent association with people who both enjoy AI "torture" and also torture of biological beings. I came across this awful news article today on a monkey torture ring - https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cmz65pjpvq5go - and can see how people into that kind of thing might add AI "torture" to their activities if it were unrestricted, so media could report on an association whether there is any real causal contribution or not.
It's not like we know whether this kind of treatment of AI makes humans more likely to be cruel to other humans or animals - animal cruelty does correlate with a person's likelihood of violence towards humans, but watching video game or movie violence has no correlation with real-life violence, so it seems like it could turn out either way. But the association would be bad for the corporate brand.
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Comment on Someone ‘torturing’ LLMs in a robot prison has triggered the dumbest debate in AI yet in ~tech
Lyrl Link ParentI don't think we can identify the "pre-loaded consciousness" in biological entities, or when it comes into existence during fetal development. That lack of current scientific understanding makes...I don't think we can identify the "pre-loaded consciousness" in biological entities, or when it comes into existence during fetal development. That lack of current scientific understanding makes me skeptical of any claim of absolutes about limits on what information consciousness can take.
As far as the training, human brains experience nerve impulses that encode information from our bodies. Encoding equivalent impulses electronically doesn't seem that different. And there is a branch of AI research that puts the AI in a robotics body, so it can move around in and interact with the physical world like a biological being does as part of it's training.
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Comment on Tilderinos who split after long (10–15 years) relationships: what led to it and how did it happen? in ~life.men
Lyrl LinkMy parents were always unhappy in their relationship: some of my earliest memories are of them fighting, and when I got a job for afternoon shift, my mom commented how she'd had an afternoon shift...My parents were always unhappy in their relationship: some of my earliest memories are of them fighting, and when I got a job for afternoon shift, my mom commented how she'd had an afternoon shift job before I was born, and she really liked it because she didn't have to spend so much time with my dad. They went to years of couples counseling. They physically separated after twenty years due to a job change for my dad and my mom's mom getting really sick, and their relationship did not survive the distance. I think my dad suggested divorce in a fit of anger, not really meaning it, and my mom took it seriously. They continued their history of intense verbal fights throughout the divorce process. They haven't spoken to each other in over twenty years now.
My husband's dad packed up and left his mom when my husband (the youngest child) was a freshman in college. He let her know by leaving a note behind. They had been married for 27 years. His mom was surprised but relieved, and they had an amicable divorce. I don't think they ever spoke again once the divorce was finalized.
In both cases property division wasn't an issue. My parents were already living apart and both had careers they could support themselves with. My husband's dad took very little, left his mom with the house, and while his mom was a homemaker his mom's father was able and willing to support her staying in the house. In both cases at least one partner had seriously considered ending the relationship for multiple years before actually starting the process.
My husband and I formalized our relationship 23 years ago, and mostly have been way happier than either of our parents. We had about a full year of a really rough patch around a few things with the big one being my wanting kid(s) and him not. I hadn't really internalized before then that normal relationship ups and downs could have a sustained down as long as a year. It sucked hard. But we kept trying to talk to each other about how we felt, and it got better again.
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Comment on Koi.rest: watch some fish and regain your balance in ~creative
Lyrl LinkInteresting idea, and the graphics are indeed pretty and restful, but the stilted movement broke the relax vibe for me.Interesting idea, and the graphics are indeed pretty and restful, but the stilted movement broke the relax vibe for me.
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Comment on Single-axis scroll has been adopted into the CSS spec and will be supported in Chromium soon in ~comp
Lyrl LinkA missing use case documented in 2017, design agreed on and coded in 2026, and rollout expected in 2029. Good things often happen slowly.A missing use case documented in 2017, design agreed on and coded in 2026, and rollout expected in 2029. Good things often happen slowly.
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Comment on Our AI midwife in ~health
Lyrl Link ParentThey mention in the article laparascopy surgery of the abdomen visualizing the outside of the uterus, hysteroscopy, and ultrasound of the uterus. The author doesn't go into very much detail about...They mention in the article laparascopy surgery of the abdomen visualizing the outside of the uterus, hysteroscopy, and ultrasound of the uterus. The author doesn't go into very much detail about the rest of their 6-year treatment, but it seems likely other imaging of the uterus was also done. It wasn't a failure to do any imaging, it was a failure to do yet another imaging after many imagings that hadn't found anything. Or failure to pick up on the potentially suspicious spot on the ultrasound that the AI noticed and based its recommendation of an MRI follow up on.
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Comment on Our AI midwife in ~health
Lyrl Link ParentI am high risk for breast cancer due to radiation treatment for lymphoma, and talked with my oncologist and gynecologist about regular breast MRI. Neither one recommended it because the contrast...maybe we should just have MRIs as part of standard reproductive-related health exams...?
I am high risk for breast cancer due to radiation treatment for lymphoma, and talked with my oncologist and gynecologist about regular breast MRI. Neither one recommended it because the contrast agent they inject to get clear MRI pictures accumulates in fatty tissues, including the brain. Occasional use seems fine, but recurring use seems likely to be risky.
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Comment on Trolley problem, again in ~humanities
Lyrl Link ParentVoting in a two-party system seems to generate quite similar arguments. Even just the choice to vote - not going any further with volunteering or donations or anything - people will object to...Voting in a two-party system seems to generate quite similar arguments. Even just the choice to vote - not going any further with volunteering or donations or anything - people will object to voting at all because they slightly dislike one choice and vehemently dislike the other. They commonly express the "pulling a (voting) lever is making me responsible for the choice, skipping voting leaves me outside the moral responsibility" language that is generally part of trolley problem discussions.
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Comment on AI hallucination of Chinese nuclear components almost led to US military attack in ~society
Lyrl Link ParentI think those are all the points the people who leaked this incident to CNN were getting at. Optimally the problem would be recognized and worked on internally, but failing that trying to rally...I think those are all the points the people who leaked this incident to CNN were getting at. Optimally the problem would be recognized and worked on internally, but failing that trying to rally public pressure seems reasonable.
Quotes from the CNN sources I read as asking for attention to the need for AI-specific system improvements.
The analyst then used AI again to package the findings into a standard intelligence report — the kind that is trusted by military officials — and disseminated it.
“AI in targeting is definitely something that is ramping up and there is no real guidance for how having a human in the loop will prevent civilian casualties or fratricide,” another source familiar with the military’s current policies said.
The administration has made huge errors, as you detailed, but even if Hegseth et al are all removed from influence (may it be so, and quickly), the underlying systems problem still needs to be figured out. It bothers me to see responses that decry the leadership and completely ignore the challenges of figuring out new systems. And then I overcompensate by replying about the systems problems and don't mention the leadership failure.
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Comment on AI hallucination of Chinese nuclear components almost led to US military attack in ~society
Lyrl Link ParentAgree the focus needs to be on the system and not the AI per se, but the AI introduces novel challenges there aren't yet good system examples to model off of. When AI fails, it does so in...Agree the focus needs to be on the system and not the AI per se, but the AI introduces novel challenges there aren't yet good system examples to model off of. When AI fails, it does so in different ways than a human would. This makes everyone's instincts developed from their own training, and any training they did of others, worse than useless. Focusing on the AI-human interaction to understand it is, I think, a reasonable first step to trying to figure out what system elements need to be set up.
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Comment on AI hallucination of Chinese nuclear components almost led to US military attack in ~society
Lyrl Link ParentHumans react to the systems they are working within. Trying to figure out how to make systems that involve AI have characteristics that make humans more likely to use independent verification of...Humans react to the systems they are working within. Trying to figure out how to make systems that involve AI have characteristics that make humans more likely to use independent verification of key points, both the analysts originating intelligence reports and the officials deciding how to react to these reports, is IMO more important than blaming the analysts and officials.
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Comment on The doomsday cult inside OpenAI in ~tech
Lyrl Link ParentA big part of the danger, as I understand it, is exposing and making it relatively easy to exploit software security vulnerabilities at rate not anticipated by standard security practices of the...A big part of the danger, as I understand it, is exposing and making it relatively easy to exploit software security vulnerabilities at rate not anticipated by standard security practices of the last several years or decades. Standards can adapt, vulnerabilities can be patched, and if you as the "good guy" give friendly actors tools and information that helps them make that transition, then "your side" will be at an advantage. Compared to stopping building of the thing, the "bad guys" get the tools first, and "your side" suffers. I don't think unilateral stand down would make sense to the people involved in AI development, even those whose fears of the technology are sincere.
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Comment on Off the Norwegian island of Fedje lies a German World War II submarine believed to contain a huge load of mercury – why salvaging it has become a race against time in ~humanities.history
Lyrl Link ParentA company I worked for once had a contractor freeze a 3-inch diameter water pipe to enable a shutoff valve to be installed. (Had been forgotten in initial construction and not noticed until we...A company I worked for once had a contractor freeze a 3-inch diameter water pipe to enable a shutoff valve to be installed. (Had been forgotten in initial construction and not noticed until we needed it a decade later.) Several companies no-quoted due to the pipe diameter - they only froze up to 2-inch pipes - and when our job was done, the freezing didn't go all the way through: it just slowed down the fresh water flow enough the valve installation was messy but doable. That experience makes me skeptical that freezing saltwater at pressure while surrounded by more water would be reliable.
Part of the Fukushima containment was freezing surrounding soil, validating ice as a containment strategy, I just don't know of a way to be confident in an underwater freezing of saltwater. Especially when, like asbestos, messing with the mercury unsuccessfully would be way worse than just leaving it alone.
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Comment on Gemini AI hacked three companies in a testing breakout, Google says in ~tech
Lyrl Link ParentIt's widely believed that aviation safety is better because accident investigations are focused on preventing future harms and not on assigning blame. Seeking prosecutions is actively harmful to...It's widely believed that aviation safety is better because accident investigations are focused on preventing future harms and not on assigning blame. Seeking prosecutions is actively harmful to making the system safer. https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2024/02/09/investigative_issues_why_youve_never_been_in_a_plane_crash_1010766.html
I believe AI incidents are similarly complex and multi-factor as aviation accidents, and would feel less safe if prosecution activity overshadowed the process of figuring out how to prevent future incidents.
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Comment on Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of September 14 in ~society
Lyrl Link ParentIt's an interesting open question how much of China's AI progress is their own innovation, and how much is distillation of the latest western models. If it's mostly distillation, slowing down...It's an interesting open question how much of China's AI progress is their own innovation, and how much is distillation of the latest western models. If it's mostly distillation, slowing down American companies would also slow down Chinese ones. Kind of high stakes to be taking a guess at, but if our intelligence agencies were led better maybe we wouldn't have to be guessing.
I read the exchange as:
It's an odd reading for me, where in my head everyone in this thread is reasonable and nice but you don't see that in each other.